


run home

by lancede



Series: heist AU [1]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Thieves, Chan is a smol ex-assassin, Crack Treated Seriously, Gen, Heist, Jeonghan is tired but also the best thief, Jihoon is their hacker and strategist, Jun is a cat burglar!!, M/M, Minghao is also a strategist plus he runs a fashion line, Mingyu & his 2.3 billion won, OT13 - Freeform, Seokmin is an actor, Seungcheol is baby, Seungkwan is a journalist, Shua is a doctor & keeps breaking the fourth wall, Soonyoung is like their martial arts fighter person, Vernon is an ex-CIA agent, Wonwoo is ex-military
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:08:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 12,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27044779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lancede/pseuds/lancede
Summary: After a car crash, Seungcheol wakes up in an alternate universe where Seventeen is not a k-pop band, but a notorious group of diamond thieves.Can he help them pull off the greatest heist of the century?
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Chwe Hansol | Vernon, Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Yoon Jeonghan, Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Series: heist AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1979752
Comments: 23
Kudos: 221





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> \- this is such a tropey fic hahaha but zero regrets
> 
> \- actually many regrets, I need to study, oh well
> 
> \- drafted this a couple months ago but then semicolon teasers happened so just gonna casually drop this
> 
> \- mostly platonic, ships tbd but will probably be some combination of jeongcheol meanie verkwan soonhoon

The first thing Seungcheol notices is his pounding headache.

He opens his eyes. He's in a large room, a bedroom? It's not his own. The walls are strange and unfamiliar, some sort of dark wood. He's in a four-poster bed. The room is lit with hazy red light, streaming in through an arched window to his left. The sun is rising — or setting?

Seungcheol raises a hand to rub at his eyes blearily. His headache spikes, hot fuzzy pain running through his skull, then the sensation fades.

A dream? He's never had one as realistic as this, he thinks, scrunching the soft down of his comforter experimentally. The last thing he remembers...

There was a car speeding toward him, headlights blindingly bright. He hadn't had time to think; he'd pushed whoever was with him — Chan? Wonwoo? — out of the way.

It's a miracle that he's still here, Seungcheol realizes. He would have expected to wake up in a hospital or something, instead of some weird mansion-looking chamber, but hey, he's not complaining. Maybe he's been moved somewhere else for recovery.

Seungcheol instinctively paws for his phone, but it's not at his bedside.

Maybe it's in his pockets? He fumbles blindly beneath the comforter, but the soft silk robe he wears is smooth to the touch. No pockets.

He swings his legs out of bed, feet landing against the cold wooden floor.

There's a mirror next to the doorway; he makes his way towards it and peers into it. He looks normal enough — no bruises, no signs of injury. He doesn't recognize the robe he's wearing.

He stumbles out into what must be a hallway, a narrow corridor leading out to a carpeted staircase. Seungcheol pads down the steps warily, toes sinking into the plush. Down one flight, then two, then three, then four. What sort of mansion is this? As he descends, he begins to notice a quiet murmur of voices. He strains his ears.

"Should we try to wake him up? He's supposed to be on the first team out."

A sigh.

"I think so. We can't be late — Jihoonie will be angry if we miss the opening, he's spent so much time getting the equipment ready."

Seungcheol relaxes, feeling the uneasiness melt out of his body as he recognizes the voices of Wonwoo and Soonyoung. He wonders how long it's been since the car accident. No doubt they've been worrying about him. Seungcheol walks faster, following their voices, taking a left and pushing through a set of double doors.

The door swings open, and he sees Wonwoo and Soonyoung sitting at some sort of conference table, calm and composed. But something is off.

The first thing he notices is the outfits the two are wearing — all black, dark trousers and dark dress shirts. Unusual, but he remembered vaguely that they'd been scheduled to film for an MV soon, so admittedly not that unusual. Their hair was also dark — but Seungcheol clearly remembered Wonwoo getting his hair dyed a nice shade of red just the previous day. It had looked fine, Seungcheol thought, but maybe the stylists had decided to change their mind?

Just how long had he been out, though?

"Seungcheol?" Wonwoo asks.

He straightens up, realizing that the two have been calling his name.

"Seungcheol, we need to be at the museum in less than an hour. You're not dressed?"

"Museum?" Seungcheol's eyes widen. They were going to a museum? Maybe for some sort of publicity thing. He could do that, sure — but hadn't he just recovered from a car accident? Wasn't it a bit much?

"Come on, go get ready. We're gonna be late," Soonyoung says, chiding.

Both of them are frowning, and Seungcheol fights down his confusion.

"Right, sorry. I'll just—" Seungcheol turns around and realizes he has no idea how to get back to his bedroom.

"Yah, hurry up," Soonyoung says, rising and nudging him out, though not ungently. "We need to leave soon to steal it and get back before midnight."

Seungcheol almost makes it out the door before the rest of the sentence hits him.

"What?" Seungcheol yelps, turning.

Soonyoung seems unimpressed, turning his shoulders back around and pushing him out again.

Wonwoo frowns. "I mean, we could switch back to 10pm, but I thought you agreed with Jihoon. Seungcheol, are you feeling all right?"

"That's... that's a joke, right. We don't steal things! We can't... rob a museum!"

Soonyoung tilts his head. "What?"

Seungcheol blinks.

"Is this another prank?" Seungcheol asks, scanning the room for hidden cameras. "It's very good. Um. Very thematic. Are we done yet though? With the prank?"

"I'm calling Jeonghan," mutters Wonwoo, and leaves the room through a back door with quick and quiet steps. Soonyoung stands stock-still, his gaze serious. Instead of laughing with Seungcheol, he scrutinizes him, eyes pinning him in place.

This Soonyoung is not the one Seungcheol knows. He's still familiar, but... he's different.

Seungcheol lets out a nervous laugh and steps back.

"I guess... I'll just go up to my room, now. And change. So we can go, um, do some things. Um. Robberies. Thefts. Right."

"Wait," Soonyoung says, and takes a step closer.

Seungcheol bolts for it.

~

Seungcheol makes it up the stairs. One flight, two flights, three flights. He picks a random corridor, chooses a random door, flings it open, shutting it tightly behind him, back pressed to the door. He listens intently for footsteps, any sign that Soonyoung might be following him.

Something clatters to the floor, and Seungcheol jumps, realizing that he is not alone in the room.

"Seungcheol?" Mingyu asks uncertainly, halfway into his shirt.

Seungcheol's eyes fall to Mingyu's shoulder, crisscrossed with dark red scars. His heart jumps, concern overtaking his confusion, and he steps forward instinctively.

"Mingyu, are you okay? What—"

The door slams open suddenly, and Seungcheol shrinks back as a figure marches into the room.

It's Jeonghan. Black hair, dark red suit. Jeonghan's normally composed face is twisted by a scowl. Wonwoo follows close behind Jeonghan, and Mingyu hurriedly shrugs on his shirt.

"Where is he?" demands Jeonghan, voice cold, and Mingyu points to the plant Seungcheol's hiding behind.

All three members turn towards him. He crouches further behind the green leaves.

 _If I can't see them, they can't see me,_ he remembers Jun saying, once long ago when they were playing a game of hide-and-seek. This is good advice. Seungcheol burrows his face into his arms.

Sadly, the plant is briskly whisked aside. Seungcheol raises his eyes hesitantly as Jeonghan stares down at him with an unreadable expression.

"Hi?" Seungcheol offers.

"Wonwoo, what has he eaten in the past few hours?" asks Jeonghan without taking eyes away. "Any injuries?"

Wonwoo shakes his head. "Nothing that I know of. He was fine this afternoon, took a nap, then came downstairs still in pajamas."

"Hm," Jeonghan says. He takes Seungcheol's chin, tilting his head back and forth.

"I got hit by a car this afternoon, if anybody noticed, actually," offers Seungcheol. "Does that count as an injury?"

"What? When?" asks Wonwoo. Jeonghan's frown deepens.

"Right after dance practice. Chan and I were crossing the street, I think, heading to an interview, and a car came out of nowhere — I pushed Chan out of the way, he should be fine. He is fine, right? And then I woke up in... a weird room..." Seungcheol trails off. The other three are silent.

"...dance practice?" Mingyu prompts.

"Er, yeah. For the comeback. Jeonghan was there, too."

Jeonghan frowns and motions to Mingyu. Mingyu ambles over and lifts Seungcheol over his shoulder. Seungcheol halfheartedly kicks his feet.

"I can walk!" Seungcheol protests. "I'm fine, I don't feel any pain or anything. Really."

"No walking," Jeonghan interrupts. "You need to get some rest until we can get Joshua to take a look at you."

"But—"

"Wonwoo?"

"Yes, Jeonghan?"

"Cancel the mission. We still have one more chance, we'll wait for the next exhibition."

Wonwoo nods and disappears.

"Cancel? What are you guys canceling? I'm fine, I really am."

"You're in no condition to help," Jeonghan says. "With our leader like this... In this state, we'd get caught as soon as we stepped inside."

Seungcheol is at a loss for words, and Mingyu carries him to his room in silence. The sun has set, and the room is immersed in darkness. Mingyu turns some sort of dial, sparking a single wall lamp into life.

And maybe everything is chaotic and weird right now, but Seungcheol's not as panicked as he should be, because he still has his members. And that means it'll be okay.

"Gyu, what's happening?"

Mingyu hesitates before speaking. "You'll be fine. Joshua will know what to do. Just rest, for now."

Mingyu disappears into the shadows, leaving Seungcheol alone as the door clicks shut.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> plot train goes vroom

The day starts as usual. Seungcheol squints open his eyes, sees the sunlight streaming bright through the windows, and promptly shuts his eyes against the glare and curls deeper into his blankets. Today is... Saturday, right? Or Sunday? Most importantly, not a weekday.

Everything is peaceful for another few seconds until his brain begins to slowly grind into action.

The memories from the day before come rushing back.

Dance practice. The accident. And that weird house...

Seungcheol jerks upright with a start, and realizes that rather than being in his familiar dorm, he's back in that weird old-fashioned-looking bedroom.

"You're awake," a voice notes. By his bedside, Joshua sits on a florally embroidered chair, scribbling notes into some sort of book.

"Shua?" Seungcheol mumbles. Joshua raises an eyebrow.

"Shua? Well, yes, although I'm usually known as Dr. Joshua Hong."

"Since when do you have a medical degree?" Seungcheol asks weakly.

"Jeonghan told me what happened yesterday. You said you were hit by a car, and you woke up here. And that you don't seem to have memories of this place at all."

"...Yep."

Joshua nods wisely. "I've heard many tales of this phenomenon. Being transported to another world after an accident — it's actually quite common."

Seungcheol blinks. "What?"

"No prescription necessary. You'll adjust with time," announces Joshua, neatly tearing a page from his book and handing it to Seungcheol. "Although you may be wondering how to get back home?"

"Er, yes?" Seungcheol looks at the fragment of paper and the unreadable script upon it.

"Yeah, sorry, no idea. You're stuck here for now. Vernon?"

On cue, the bedroom doorway opens with a creak.

"There. Vernon can explain a bit more about this world to you. My job here is done."

As Hansol swaps places with Joshua, the two speaking rapidly, Seungcheol muses on this information. Come to think of it, he remembers Joshua — _his_ Shua — rambling on about some anime plot that also involved some sort of soul-swapping. If that's what happened to him — well, it's not the worst thing to happen, especially after a car accident that very well could have been fatal. The anime had a happy ending, so who's to say Seungcheol couldn't have one too?

...It _did_ have a happy ending, right?

"Hey. How are you feeling?" asks Vernon, and Seungcheol blinks out of his thoughts.

"I'm okay," he says with confidence. "This is... disorienting, but it won't be a problem. I can deal with this."

"Good. That's the Seungcheol we know," says Vernon. "So... I'll just jump right into it, if that sounds good. If you have questions, just stop me."

Seungcheol nods.

"Right. So, you're Seungcheol. You're the head of our group. We're called Seventeen, which isn't because we have seventeen members—"

"But because there are thirteen members, three units, and one group, forming Seventeen."

Vernon tilts his head. "No, it's the number of minutes it took for us to break into our first bank. Chan came up with the name."

"Oh."

"There _are_ thirteen members, though. I guess you already know them. You'll learn about their backgrounds as you go."

"What do you do?" Seungcheol asks.

"I used to be a CIA agent. But yeah, Jeonghan recruited me. You could say I specialize in disguises."

"Okay. Uh, so more generally, in this world, Seventeen are... thieves?"

"Yep." Vernon nods. "We also do jobs other than heists, but theft is our forte as a group."

"Right," Seungcheol faintly. He reaches for a glass of water by his bed and takes a sip.

"Although that's shifted recently," Vernon muses thoughtfully. "Anyway. Make sense so far?"

"Yes?"

"Great. Okay, so our current mission is to steal a diamond. It's called the Carat diamond, on account of it being exactly a thousand carats."

Seungcheol blinks rapidly.

"Carat diamond? Wait, a th— a thousand? Is that even physically possible?"

"Yeah. It was only brought to the Met a couple weeks ago."

"We're robbing the Met?!"

"Yeah. Sorry, I probably should have explained this more gradually."

"It's... It's okay."

"We're in New York right now, in an old CIA safe house, of sorts. Asked a favor from a friend." He gestures at the walls. "Our plan was to steal the diamond at one of its exhibitions. There are two of them: one was yesterday, the other one is coming up tonight. Joshua said that you'll still be able to contribute to the mission — something about skill transfer and something else about, um, narrative plot — so if Jeonghan approves, you'll join us after you finish your schedule for the rest of the day."

Seungcheol nods tentatively.

"Why are we stealing the diamond, though?"

Vernon opens his mouth to reply, but is cut off by the rumbling of Seungcheol's stomach, and he realizes that he hasn't technically eaten anything since the previous day. Vernon laughs.

"I guess that can wait for later. Joshua should have passed on your diagnosis to the others by now. How about you change out of your pajamas, then come down for breakfast?" Vernon says. Seungcheol heartily agrees.

~

The closet is filled with a concerning amount of black clothes and an even more concerning amount of Kevlar — something he tries not to think too much about — but Seungcheol finally manages to pick out black jeans and a comfortable gray sweater. Seungcheol eyes his outfit in the bathroom mirror. It doesn't seem a particularly thief-esque outfit, but he reasons that he won't be called upon to do any of the actual work anyway.

Guided by the smell of frying meat, Seungcheol makes his way downstairs towards the kitchen. Peeking inside, he watches as Junhui expertly flips an egg pancake towards Mingyu, who catches it on a plate and passes it to a yawning Jeonghan, who sits at a circular dining table.

Despite himself, Seungcheol smiles. Some things just don't change.

Quietly, he slips into the seat next to Jeonghan.

"Good morning," Seungcheol offers.

"Vernon's explained everything to you?" asks Jeonghan tentatively.

"Yep," Seungcheol says, and before he can think any better of it, steals a corner of Jeonghan's pancake. Suddenly he realizes that this might not be the best etiquette for breakfast with super-dangerous criminals, but Seungcheol forces himself to chew calmly as if nothing has happened.

Jeonghan stares at him curiously, and Seungcheol breathes a sigh of relief as Jeonghan slowly turns back to his plate.

"Seungcheol, pancake?" asks Jun, peeking past Mingyu's frame to see Seungcheol's response. "We only have enough for one more, though, and Jihoon still hasn't come downstairs—"

"No, it's okay. I can just share with Hannie."

Jeonghan chokes on his pancake. Seungcheol thumps Jeonghan's back reassuringly, then realizes what he's doing and abruptly retracts his hand.

Jun shrugs and turns back to the stove. The next few minutes pass awkwardly, with Seungcheol pulling off corners from Jeonghan's pancake and wishing that the ground would swallow him any second.

"Did everyone else already eat, then?" asks Seungcheol, breaking the silence.

Beside him, Jeonghan nods, counting on his fingers.

"Soonyoung, Minghao, and Chan probably went to the training hall to fight. Jihoon's probably still sleeping, or he might be hacking, or he might be down with them. The rest are out for the day. In fact, I should go check on Jihoon," Jeonghan mutters, pushing back his chair with a squeak. "Have to make sure he eats properly and all that."

Seungcheol smiles softly as he watches Jeonghan leave, and with a happy sigh, he sets about devouring the rest of his pancake.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> plot train goes vroom, part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- after writing this I remembered cheol very inconveniently has that black belt in taekwondo... so for narrative purposes, diamond thief coups = taekwondo coups; k-pop coups does not know taekwondo :)
> 
> \- also it seems that I am fundamentally unable to write anything serious or shippy & must occasionally insert vague meme references to relieve the tension so apologies in advance

The rest of breakfast passes smoothly. Mingyu regales him and Junhui with the scandalous tale of his third divorce and the acquisition of his fifth château. _When in doubt, be supportive_ , Seungcheol thinks, and nods along.

Afterwards, he follows the two of them to the training hall.

"Joshua said that you would be joining us tonight, so it's good for you to at least learn some basic self-defense," Mingyu explains.

This seems reasonable; Seungcheol doesn't feel too nervous about this. Fighting can't be too different from dancing, right? In a way, the training hall is just a different version of their dance studio.

"Ready?" Junhui asks. Seungcheol nods.

Junhui opens the doors.

_THWAM!_

The body of Kwon Soonyoung slams into the bamboo mat at his feet. Seungcheol yells in surprise and flinches away, startled by the sheer force with which Soonyoung had been thrown into the floor.

Soonyoung weakly rolls over and extends a hand to Seungcheol, his muscles quivering. There's blood smeared across his nose and chin.

"Heya, Seungcheol," Soonyoung gurgles. Two trainees approach — Minghao and Chan. Soonyoung’s body is hauled away, his clothes making a swishing sound against the mats.

Seungcheol looks up and catches sight of the small scowling figure at the end of the chamber. His arms are crossed, and he wears a casual t-shirt with loose pants. His cropped inky-black bangs hang loose over his forehead. Seungcheol recognizes him immediately.

Jihoon.

"Last match, Soonyoung. You challenged me to three, so get up," Jihoon says, dark eyes lacking any shred of pity as Minghao and Chan stand Soonyoung back on his feet. Soonyoung wobbles, but puts on a facetious grin.

“Another round? So soon?”

Jihoon feints, and Soonyoung hops back awkwardly.

Seungcheol starts forward, but Junhui holds him back, fingers tight against his wrist.

"But Soonyoung is injured," Seungcheol protests.

With a shout, Jihoon lunges at Soonyoung. Seungcheol closes his eyes.

But there's no answering impact, only the swish of empty air. Seungcheol cracks an eye open. Soonyoung has sidestepped Jihoon's attack. He settles into a solid fighting stance, keeping the distance between himself and Jihoon.

"One more round it is, Jihoonie," Soonyoung agrees, raking his bangs away from his face. Jihoon's eyes glitter with determination.

They circle each other warily, searching for weaknesses.

Then lightning-fast, Soonyoung leaps forward, right foot snapping towards Jihoon's chin.

Jihoon immediately ducks; his arms latch onto Soonyoung's standing leg. He heaves upwards and lifts Soonyoung off the ground, Soonyoung's leg buckling as he falls bodily onto Jihoon's shoulders.

Jihoon straightens into a standing position, and Seungcheol cringes as Jihoon turns his hips slightly, readying to throw Soonyoung's weight to the ground.

Again.

But this time Soonyoung holds on. His left hand loops around and locks on Jihoon's neck in a chokehold, causing Jihoon to falter. Jihoon tries to jerk out of the grip, but Soonyoung only twists to a new position, adding his other hand and tightening the pressure.

Jihoon gags, but refuses to release Soonyoung's leg.

"I win," Soonyoung gasps, face lit with victory.

Then Jihoon whips his head around and bites down _hard_. Soonyoung yanks back his wrist with a muffled yelp, and—

_THWAM!_

Jihoon massages his throat as Chan helps Soonyoung up once again. Soonyoung mumbles something under his breath, then exchanges a polite bow with Jihoon and takes a seat.

Seungcheol smiles. Okay, so this universe is a little different, but he's glad that his members are happy and thriving in their own ways.

Minghao appears silently at his side.

"Your turn now," says Minghao, guiding Seungcheol towards Jihoon. Seungcheol follows willingly for at least a dozen steps before his brain kicks into operation and he's kicking and struggling to escape.

"Save the fighting for later," Minghao tells him grumpily.

"But I'm not ready! This isn’t necessary!" protests Seungcheol. Minghao and Chan exchange glances.

"You're not the Seungcheol I know," notes Jihoon, who crosses his arms and inspects Seungcheol. "Can you even fight at all?"

"No, um. But I can rap, and dance, and sing."

"Dance?" Jihoon echoes doubtfully. Seungcheol nods fervently.

"See, just let me go for a moment," he says, and Minghao releases his arm. Seungcheol hesitates, but only briefly.

"Aju _nice_ ," Seungcheol says and launches into the familiar dance, humming the melody, cleanly tracing the steps as Minghao and Chan move back to give him space. Dancing without music is always awkward, but the soft impacts of his feet on the mat slowly build into a familiar rhythm. Seungcheol finishes the dance with confidence and bows deeply.

"Seems catchy," offers Chan.

“Not bad,” says Minghao.

"Cool dance," agrees Soonyoung, plucking an imaginary suspender.

"Right." Jihoon shrugs. "Okay, pretend you're in close combat. Someone's trying to punch you in the face, like this—"

~

Seungcheol emerges from the training hall with, miraculously, only that one bruise on his cheekbone. He's not too upset about it, though — Jihoon had honestly thought he'd had enough time to dodge. Anyway, he'd learned a lot. Surprisingly, a lot of skills from dancing translated well to fighting.

Apparently, it's Chan's turn to babysit him. Seungcheol follows Chan out of the training hall as Junhui takes Seungcheol's place on the mat. He's only slightly worried about Junhui's echoing shrieks of pain behind him. Junhui's just exaggerating. Probably.

The two of them walk slowly, Chan leading the way through the winding hallways. He’s suspiciously quiet; Seungcheol makes eye contact with him.

"Didn't know our leader was such a crybaby," Chan says with a shrug, nonchalant.

"I'm not a crybaby," Seungcheol corrects him. "I'm still the leader of Seventeen in my world. I'm tough.”

Chan jabs him lightly in the side, just where he's ticklish, and Seungcheol yelps and jumps about two feet in the air.

Chan snickers, and Seungcheol glares at him. They continue to walk.

Seungcheol’s eyes wander to the corridor walls. He admires the old paintings hanging in heavy-looking frames: eerie portraits and sweeping landscapes. There’s something that catches his eye, though — some sort of bulletin board.

Seungcheol pauses. There are a few newspaper articles neatly taped up:

_Moonlight mystery: cat burglar strikes again_

_8fashion releases new jewelry line, read on for exclusive interview_

_Friday power outage linked to completely accidental gas leak_

_Lee Seokmin stars in ICARUS: get your tickets today!_

There’s a blurry photograph of himself taped to the upper corner of the board. He’s exiting some sort of elevator, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. A written note is pinned beside the photo: _Be more careful. -SK_

Chan turns around, realizing Seungcheol is no longer following him.

"What was your Seungcheol like?" Seungcheol wonders.

Chan shrugs. "Tough. Brave. Unhesitating."

"So... not me?" asks Seungcheol.

"No," replies Chan immediately, and Seungcheol raises an eyebrow. The two of them begin walking again. "But... I can tell that there's more to you than you look. You're not a baby, as much as you're acting like one."

"I'm not acting. And I'm not a baby," defends Seungcheol.

 _"I'm not a baby,"_ Chan mimics. Seungcheol pouts, then hurriedly corrects his expression. Chan laughs, although something about his expression still seems guarded.

"Anyway. Jeonghan will be explaining tonight's plan to you for the next hour or so," Chan tells him, checking his watch and gesturing towards a door. “Minghao will join you in a bit.”

"You guys run like clockwork, don't you," muses Seungcheol.

"We're Seventeen. It's what we do," says Chan with a shrug. Seungcheol feels a surge of fondness. He looks down at his shoes, hiding a small smile.

"Chan..."

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad to be here. I'm worried about what my own members are getting up to right now, but I'm glad to be here. I can't imagine being without you guys, being all alone in some strange new world. That would be really hard,” Seungcheol admits honestly. "And I just want you to know, Seventeen will always be precious and important to me, no matter what. I know I don't have the experience or the skills that the other Seungcheol had, but I'll do my best. It's good to be here."

There is no response.

"Chan?"

Seungcheol looks up, and is met by only the soft glow of the mansion chandeliers and a very noticeable emptiness. Chan has long since left.

Seungcheol clutches his hair and groans. He takes it back. He takes it _all_ back. He's going back to bed. Seungcheol is going to go upstairs and hide in a big pile of blankets and _not_ come out ever again—

The door opens, and Seungcheol hurriedly extricates his fingers from his hair and stands up.

"Seungcheol," Jeonghan greets him. "Come inside."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> kind of a dialogue-heavy (but short!) chapter

"What's with the bruise?" Jeonghan asks, closing the door behind Seungcheol with a click.

Seungcheol looks around the room curiously. It's some sort of study, a small yet spacious square room with red latticed wallpaper and floor-to-ceiling bookcases. A polished desk sits in the center of the study, its surface covered in blueprints and designs. There are two armchairs opposite the desk; Jeonghan motions towards one of them, and Seungcheol sits.

"It's nothing," Seungcheol says, touching his cheekbone gingerly. "Just an accident during sparring."

Jeonghan accepts this explanation without much reaction. He walks to the other side of the desk and sits, shuffling through papers.

Seungcheol takes the opportunity to study Jeonghan more closely. He looks contemplative. Tired, even, as he scans through diagrams, looking for something. His hair is different from the day before — rather than falling away from his forehead in neat waves, his hair has been haphazardly combed back, strands falling loose here and there. Seungcheol resists the urge to tuck those strands into place.

"Where did Vernon leave off?" Jeonghan asks, and Seungcheol returns to attention.

"Heist plans," answers Seungcheol. "We have two opportunities to get the Carat diamond. One was yesterday, the other one is coming up tonight."

Jeonghan nods approvingly.

"Right. The first exhibition, which was yesterday, was invitation-only. Mostly gemologists and art critics." Jeonghan taps on an envelope. "We had two access points. Minghao was invited — he runs a fashion company — and Seokmin is on the board of trustees. The second exhibition is coming up tonight. It's also invitation-only, but less selective. There'll be a larger crowd, including journalists and other celebrities."

Jeonghan traces his finger down a list. "Mingyu and Seungkwan have also been invited to the second event, so we have four people who can officially be there. The downside is that there'll be more potential witnesses."

"Makes sense," Seungcheol says, but he hesitates.

"But?"

"Why exactly are we stealing the diamond? Vernon didn't mention."

Jeonghan exhales, taking a moment to answer. Behind Seungcheol, the door creaks open as Minghao enters, quietly taking the seat next to Seungcheol.

"We're not doing it for the money," Jeonghan explains. "The Carat diamond isn't just any diamond — it's _ours_. It was our first operation together as Seventeen."

"It's been with us for over five years," adds Minghao.

Jeonghan passes him a small glossy photograph of a diamond. It's a roughly triangular chunk of crystal, clear but with the faintest hint of purple coloring.

"How did we lose it, then?" Seungcheol asks.

Jeonghan's expression goes cold.

"Operation gone wrong," Minghao explains smoothly. "We're not always flawless. We had to make a quick escape and accidentally left the diamond behind. It was taken before we could return for it."

"But we're taking it back," Seungcheol concludes, and Minghao smiles tightly in response.

Jeonghan pushes a large scroll of paper towards him. Museum blueprints, Seungcheol realizes, and with a chill, he recognizes his own handwriting on many of the pages.

"The diamond is currently being kept at the Metropolitan Museum of Art," Jeonghan explains. "It's kept in an underground vault. Airless, with pressure sensors to detect entry. The diamond shares the space with several other artworks, but we're only there for the diamond."

"Just the diamond," Seungcheol echoes.

"Right. Within the vault, each piece is locked in its own individual case, which contains a GPS tracker. One guard is outside the vault at all times, and there are CCTV cameras both in and out of the vault, as well as throughout the museum."

Seungcheol flicks through the blueprints, nodding.

"The only time the vault is pressurized is when the diamond — or some other artwork — is being transported. Currently, the only movements scheduled for the vault are the two private Carat exhibitions."

"I see."

"We know the transportation procedure. A pair of security guards will open the vault and transport the diamond in its case to the gallery. They move the diamond to the display and stand by. The exhibition is 2 hours long. They'll swap guards at the 1 hour mark. Afterwards, the guards return the diamond to its case and transport it back to the vault. Got it?"

"Diamond in vault," Seungcheol summarizes. "Taken out during exhibition for 2 hours. Then returned to the vault."

Jeonghan nods.

"Out of curiosity, how would you plan the heist?" Minghao asks. Seungcheol raises an eyebrow. He hums a bit, pretending to think.

"Say that we have teams A, B, and C. Team A will obtain the case's keycode. Team B will dispatch the second rotation of guards, to be replaced by Team C. Team A will pass the keycode to Team C, and Team C will swap the diamond with a fake as they return it to the vault."

Minghao and Jeonghan look considerably surprised. Seungcheol makes it about 5 seconds before he folds.

"I just read off the notes I wrote, here," Seungcheol confesses, pointing to the scroll, and Minghao hums amusedly. Jeonghan's lips twitch into a smile.

"In any case, that's the plan. If you don't have any further questions..." Jeonghan checks his watch. "We've finished early. Then we'll be joining the rest of the group for lunch, I suppose."

Seungcheol nods, before something very important comes to mind.

"Wait. Which team am I on? What am I supposed to do?" he asks.

Jeonghan trades glances with Minghao. "You'll be with Jihoon, keeping an eye on things and stepping in if something goes wrong."

"So... I don't really have anything to do," Seungcheol confirms, frowning, and Jeonghan laughs.

"We're a 13-person team. With so many moving parts, something will inevitably go wrong — don't worry, Seungcheol, you'll have something to do."


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> one more filler chapter before the heist~

Seungcheol climbs the staircase to the mansion's rooftop for lunch. This must be his… fourth? Or fifth meeting of the day? His schedule is even busier than his usual.

He nudges the rooftop door open and is met by a gust of chilly air. Seungcheol shivers, realizing the outside temperature. Although it's noon, the skies are cloudy and gray, and Seungcheol can feel the mist in the air. His sweater is warm enough, though, so he steps out and closes the door behind him.

Despite the cold weather, the rooftop atmosphere is lively. Most of the team has already gathered for lunch; they swarm around a set of long dark couches arranged in a semicircle around a fire pit. The fire pit crackles with flames, creating a more comfortable warmth, and the members chatter idly, passing around steaming bowls of noodles.

Here are the normal things that Seungcheol notices: Joshua strumming an anime theme song on his guitar. Come to think of it, something's off there, but oh well.

Here are the not-so-normal things that Seungcheol notices: Chan sharpening a dagger. Seungkwan inspecting a bulletproof vest. Wonwoo organizing a pile of ammunition. Jihoon fiddling with wires attached to something that looks disturbingly like an explosive.

Seungcheol makes special notice of that last one, and takes a seat far away from Jihoon.

"Here you go," says Vernon, passing him a bowl. "It's pretty good this time."

Seungcheol nods his head in thanks and inhales deeply, noting the fragrant smell of green onions. The two of them sit in companionable silence, watching the members.

"And then the lawyer says, like, 'That's impossible! You were clearly just after their money!'" Mingyu declares loudly, slurping his noodles. "And I said..."

"Charred potato?"

"Hm?" asks Seungcheol, startled.

Junhui smiles, twirling a forkful of potato above the fire pit. "I said, would you like some lightly charred potato?"

"Sure," Seungcheol responds hesitantly. Jun carefully feeds him the forkful. The slice of potato is spicy and strangely crispy, and Seungcheol gives Jun his compliments. Jun smiles angelically.

"You have all the equipment you need, right?"

"Equipment? Oh, right. Yes. Walkie talkie, annotated museum map, erm... tiny binoculars..."

"Don’t worry, I'm not sure what those are called either," Jun says, patting them on the shoulder. "You'll do fine!"

Seungcheol laughs, and settles into easy conversation.

~

After a while, Jun and Vernon leave to help clean up. Seungcheol wanders around and finds himself next to Jihoon, whose mechanical device has, somewhat concerningly, begun ticking.

"Er, Jihoonie? Your explosive thing is ticking?"

Jihoon's head snaps up. _"Jihoonie?"_

"Jihoon! I meant Jihoon, sorry!"

Jihoon frowns and returns his attention to his device, unclipping cables and weaving apart wires with deft fingers. The device begins to tick faster.

"Oh, that's not good," mutters Jihoon.

 _And then everything blows up and we all die_ , Seungcheol thinks. What an anticlimactic ending that would be.

"Seungcheol, more noodles?" Mingyu asks. Seungcheol decides that ignorance is bliss, and accepts the bowl.

"Don't forget to brief everyone when we're done eating," Jihoon reminds him, and Seungcheol answers, "Okay," before realizing that that's something he very much does not want to do.

Sure, he's comfortable with getting his own Seventeen's attention, but this Seventeen? Seungcheol slurps his noodles disconsolately. He's not doing anything until Chan finishes polishing that dagger.

~

Jeonghan taps a wine glass, emitting a high-pitched ringing sound, and Seungcheol is saved from his dilemma. The members' conversations peter out.

"We'll be leaving in a few hours," Jeonghan announces. "We're keeping to our secondary plan. Jihoon and Seungcheol will be monitoring from nearby the museum.”

"Team A: Seokmin, Mingyu, Minghao. Don't forget your invitations. The museum has been known to swap keycodes randomly, so double check if you can. Jun will be following your team, so signal if anything goes wrong.

"Team B: Chan, Soonyoung, Joshua. No casualties, be subtle. Seungkwan will get you into the museum.

"Team C: Wonwoo, Vernon. Stick close to Team B, and be ready.

"We'll meet in front of the vans at sunset. Last comments?"

"Heads up that this may or may not explode," Jihoon says, and cuts the final wire of his explosive.

Seungcheol holds his breath, but the ticking simply ceases and red lights flicker out.

"Nice job, Jihoon. If that's all, you're free until four. Go train, scheme, make sandwiches, whatever — be on time. Say the name!"

"Seventeen!" the members roar, and Seungcheol joins in happily.

~

Jeonghan hands another box of surveillance equipment to Seungcheol, who catches it and squeezes it into the already jam-packed back of the van.

It's started raining a bit. Just sprinkling rain, nothing major, but it spills onto the cobblestones, and Seungcheol's boots kick up small splashes from time to time.

Seungcheol's had some more time to think about his situation, but he's still getting over the latest surprise. His brain had expected their "vans" to be the sleek modern carriers that ferried around their band through cities, so he'd been considerably taken aback when faced by these vintage matte monstrosities. But the vehicles do have a certain aesthetic. Seungcheol files a mental note.

"Thinking about something?" asks Jeonghan.

"A music video, maybe," Seungcheol muses. "I mean... no, not really."

Jeonghan raises an eyebrow and passes him another box.

"Tell me about it."

He tells Jeonghan about their last filming and the hijinks that Joshua and other-Jeonghan had gotten up to. Jeonghan is confused by a lot of his story, but he catches onto his own prank strategy quickly, and begins to smirk.

"And then we ran out of the store, and left you alone _again_ , right? And you didn't notice?"

" _Hannie—_ " Seungcheol says, then catches himself. "Well... yes."

It's not even that funny of a prank, but Jeonghan wheezes with laughter, his face cleared of its weight of responsibility, if only for a second. Seungcheol smiles.

"You really are different from our Seungcheol," Jeonghan tells him, once he's regained his composure.

Seungcheol shrugs and scratches his neck awkwardly. "I guess. Chan mentioned that I was being weird. Not, um, being tough and brave."

Jeonghan's smile subsides into a more pensive look. He purses his lips and turns to another box of equipment. "Not excessively so."

"Not excessively?"

Jeonghan is quiet for a moment.

"It's nice," Jeonghan says finally. "You value the small moments. And you enjoy listening."

Seungcheol isn't sure how to respond to that. Jeonghan hands Seungcheol another box, and they carry on loading equipment into the vans.

"I'll be up in the air vents by the gallery," Jeonghan tells him. "It's not easy to move in and out of them quickly, but if you need something, find me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- next up: the heist!! POVs will switch up a bit to show more of the hijinks. hope you enjoy~
> 
> \- also thank you all for your kudos & comments!! really makes my day <3
> 
> \- here's the heist plan for reference! * = has an invitation
> 
> TEAM A - get the keycode ------  
> Junhui, Minghao*, Mingyu*, Seokmin*  
> TEAM B - eliminate guards -----  
> Joshua, Soonyoung, Chan, Seungkwan*  
> TEAM C - replace guards -------  
> Wonwoo, Vernon  
> SUPPORT - surveillance --------  
> Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Jihoon


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the heist begins!!
> 
> POV: Wonwoo for this chapter :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> once more, the heist plan!
> 
> TEAM A - get the keycode ------  
> Junhui, Minghao*, Mingyu*, Seokmin*  
> TEAM B - eliminate guards -----  
> Joshua, Soonyoung, Chan, Seungkwan*  
> TEAM C - replace guards -------  
> Wonwoo, Vernon  
> SUPPORT - surveillance --------  
> Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Jihoon  
> 

All five of them line up outside the museum — Soonyoung and Chan in their usual tactical gear, Wonwoo and Vernon in their security guard disguises, and Joshua in a stylish black trench coat.

Cold marble digs between Wonwoo's shoulder blades as he presses his back against the wall, waiting.

"We're too exposed," Chan whispers. Wonwoo agrees with him — although the sun has set and the sky is dark, any onlooker would have no trouble picking out their five dark silhouettes against the museum's pale stone.

But Wonwoo's instincts tell him to stay put. The five of them are in a relatively secluded spot. The wind is strong, and the rippling and shifting shadows of an oak tree overhead help to break up their figures.

A dog barks, off in the distance.

They wait.

Finally, Wonwoo hears a lock turning, and the side door scrapes open. Seungkwan's head pokes out.

"All clear," he chirps, ushering them inside. "The vault entrance is just up ahead."

Soonyoung leads the way, and the rest of them follow closely behind. They move quickly through the empty corridors of the museum, footsteps falling silently on the marble floor.

They stop just outside the vault entrance, listening intently.

"I hear voices," Soonyoung confirms. "The rest of you, step back."

Wonwoo retreats behind a column, holding his breath as the voices grow in volume.

With a hissing sound, the vault door opens, and two guards step outside, carrying a small but heavy-looking metallic cube. The doors close with a puff of air, and Soonyoung and Chan immediately spring into action.

Chan moves in a blur, jabbing the guard carrying the cube in the solar plexus. The guard wheezes and buckles, but doesn't relinquish their grip on the cube; the guard swings the cube desperately towards Chan's leg. Chan dodges just in time.

Meanwhile, Soonyoung and the other guard are locked in close combat, trading punches and kicks. They dance across the corridor, Soonyoung luring the guard further and further from the vault.

The guard's back is to Vernon when Vernon steps out and neatly strikes the guard on the head.

The guard collapses.

Just as quickly, Chan's fight has also finished, a swift kick rendering the other guard unconscious. He nods to Joshua, who emerges from the shadows with a syringe and kneels by the guards, checking their pulses then efficiently sedating the two in quick succession.

"Done," states Joshua. "Soonyoung, Chan, help me move them. Wonwoo, Vernon, you're good to go. Seungkwan? Update Jihoon."

Wonwoo grasps and lifts the cube containing the Carat diamond. It's small, but heavy. It seems temptingly easy to just run with it — they could probably break it out of the case before it was tracked down — but it's too risky, and everything is going according to plan. He passes it to Vernon instead.

"We have a slight problem," says Seungkwan.

Seungkwan shakes his walkie talkie a few times and presses the buttons, but there's nothing but the answering noise of static. Each member tries using their own device, but their communications are similarly malfunctioning.

"Coincidence?" proposes Soonyoung. Wonwoo shakes his head.

"The devices themselves seem to be fine. Something's jamming the airwaves. Something in the museum, maybe."

"Jihoon still has control of security, though," Vernon says, pointing to a camera, its red light blinking at twice the usual speed.

"Then we'll continue as planned," suggests Soonyoung.

"We just won't be able to communicate between each other," Seungkwan muses, before his eyes light up. "I can go with Vernon and Wonwoo."

"No. That's a really bad idea," interjects Wonwoo.

Seungkwan glares at him. "No, listen. I can follow you two to the gallery, then I'll loop back and give the rest of you the all clear. I have an invitation. They'll let me in."

Vernon shrugs. "It's not a bad idea."

"No, I'm pretty sure this is a bad idea," Wonwoo says, a queasy feeling settling in his stomach. "We should stick to the plan."

"Well, technically I don't have any further assignments besides getting you all access to the museum, so I _am_ following the plan. Besides, having an extra person around will be helpful."

Wonwoo is pretty sure that having an extra person around will ruin their cover, but they don't have time to argue. And Seungkwan has shown himself to be resourceful in the past, so he grudgingly agrees.

They say their farewells, and the three of them set off towards the gallery.

~

Wonwoo walks quietly and calmly towards the diamond's exhibition room, Vernon at his side, and Seungkwan trailing a few paces behind, snapping pictures.

Wonwoo throws a glare at him. "Seungkwan, act natural," he scolds.

"I _am_ acting natural. I'm a journalist, taking pictures is what I do!"

They round the corner, and Wonwoo bites back his response as he sights a young man up ahead — a particularly unusual-looking museum guest. Although the guest seems young, his hair is an odd shade of silver, almost as if it's been purposefully dyed to be that color. He wears a white formal jacket and a dark bow tie.

The guest blocks their way.

"Excuse me," he says in a deep voice. "I'm quite lost. Would you happen to know how to get to the Medieval Art gallery?"

"No, sorry," says Wonwoo, attempting to step aside, but the guest sticks an arm out.

"It's very important. I told my friends I'd meet up with them there."

 _That doesn’t seem especially important,_ Wonwoo thinks, and he glares at him.

"I can take you there," volunteers Seungkwan.

"No. I will," says Vernon.

Wonwoo blinks in surprise, turning to Vernon, but Vernon keeps his face unreadable, passing the diamond case to Wonwoo.

"Wonwoo, stay here for just a second. There's something I'd like to check."

Vernon ushers the guest off. Seungkwan frowns.

"That guy was _extremely_ suspicious," says Seungkwan.

Wonwoo agrees — alarm bells are all but literally going off inside his head.

~

Wonwoo waits patiently, but Seungkwan grows restless, pulling out his camera and clicking pictures.

_Click... click..._

He frowns at Seungkwan, who senses his stare.

"Taking pictures is what I do," Seungkwan repeats, squatting to capture a close-up of a smudged handprint on the wall. "I have a day job, you know. I need to collect material."

"This is just an empty hallway."

Seungkwan straightens up and frowns at him, pocketing his camera.

"First of all, _just_ an empty hallway — that's a terrible mindset to have. Second of all, I don't have to be here, you know. I'm not some superspy. I don't even know how I got into this mess."

"Shhh."

"What? Nobody's around."

"Just don't say 'superspy' so loudly," Wonwoo sighs. "And as for what got you into this mess, it was _you_ who got yourself involved with Vernon—"

"He crashed my university lecture, it was hardly my fault—"

"Right, but you didn't have to tag along for the rest of his mission—"

"I'm a journalist, that's what I do—"

"Journalist in _training_ —"

" _Excuse_ you—"

Suddenly, the lights flicker out, and the hallway is plunged into darkness. Wonwoo freezes.

"Did _not_ sign up for this," mutters Seungkwan, quietly moving so his back is to Wonwoo.

Wonwoo takes a moment to organize his thoughts.

"First thing. We need to find Vernon. Can you go look for him? Something's up," Wonwoo asks.

Seungkwan nods.

"That tourist was strange," Seungkwan agrees. "I’ll track him down. You'll continue to the exhibit, then?"

Wonwoo jerks his head in a nod. "Yeah. Good luck."

"Good luck," Seungkwan echoes before darting down the hallway.

Wonwoo takes a breath and makes his way forward.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> plot train continues to vroom ahead!
> 
> first part of this chapter is Wonwoo's POV, then it switches back to Seungcheol :)

The Carat exhibition is easy for Wonwoo to pick out; a bright violet-colored banner hangs above the entrance. The gallery itself is relatively simple in design; wide marble steps lead up to a small chamber. It's surrounded by a throng of critics and celebrities, their attire ranging from somber tuxedos to startlingly red cocktail dresses to everything in between.

The crowd mills about, laughing, chatting, waiting for their turn to enter and to have a glimpse of the celebrated thousand-carat diamond. At the base of the steps, a security guard, blond-haired and tall, holds the crowd back, inspecting invitations.

The security guard is unhurried and meticulous, comparing each guest's face to a book of small photographs.

The odds don't seem good — the guard will be expecting two people to take the shift, and that makes it more likely that Wonwoo will be stopped.

"Need a distraction?" asks a voice behind him.

Wonwoo turns around. Mingyu grins wolfishly, hair slicked back and looking suave and confident in a full-length plush fur coat.

"Nice coat," Wonwoo remarks, surprised that his voice is steady.

"Thanks," Mingyu replies, his grin shifting into a genuine smile. He nods towards the exhibit.

"Minghao should already be inside. I can give you a minute or two — Seokmin and I will start something. Be careful."

"You too," responds Wonwoo automatically, and Mingyu strolls towards the security guard. Wonwoo moves to the perimeter of the crowd to watch and wait.

Ahead, Mingyu rummages briefly in his coat, then presents his invitation along with a blinding smile.

"Hello. Kim Mingyu. I'm here to see the Carat diamond."

"Kim Mingyu," the guard repeats, checking the name off her list with the deft flick of a pen. Mingyu waits patiently.

"Good. Next."

Mingyu inclines his head and begins to climb the steps to the gallery, his fur coat swishing elegantly behind him.

"Oh, no! _No!_ " cries out a voice, stilling the guests' conversations.

The guard pauses, pen in mid-air.

"You're wrong! _Terribly_ wrong! I don't want a divorce."

A tear-stained figure emerges from the crowd.

"Oh, Mingyu, when I knew tonight that I — when I knew I loved you, I ran home to tell you," Lee Seokmin sobs passionately, falling to his knees.

The crowd gasps and bursts into murmured speculation. The journalists' cameras immediately swivel away from the gallery and towards Seokmin and Mingyu, shutters clicking furiously.

Mingyu pauses on the steps, his back still turned.

"Mingyu, do listen to me!" Seokmin calls out, his voice high and clear. "I must have loved you for years, only I was such a stupid fool I didn't know it. Please believe me! You _must_ care!"

Seokmin clutches a hand to his heart and falls silent, overcome with emotion.

Mingyu turns and descends the steps, all eyes upon him.

"Seokmin," Mingyu begins melodramatically, and trips over his coat.

Wonwoo sighs as Mingyu clumsily rolls down the steps towards the crowd. This does have the effect of totally capturing the guard's attention, however. Her eyes widen and she rushes to halt Mingyu's descent.

 _Time to go,_ Wonwoo thinks, and he tears his eyes away. He walks briskly and purposefully towards the gallery.

"My foot!" Mingyu groans, pain apparent in his voice. "It's sprained, it's sprained—"

"I never really loved Ashley!"

"Seokmin, _help me up._ "

"Right, sorry—"

Wonwoo keeps his gaze focused forward, and the voices fade into the distance.

He approaches the gallery. He can see into its interior already: it's dimly lit, illuminated only by a gentle rosy glow at its center. The display for the Carat diamond. A few guests gather around it, unaware of the outside commotion. They gaze in hushed silence, faces drawn to the light.

Wonwoo pauses for a moment, a memory resurfacing of a night long ago — thirteen members huddled together in a circle, eyes bright with adrenaline and excitement.

He lingers by the entrance, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dimness.

Maybe that's why he doesn't see the incoming blow before it's too late.

~

"Not good," Jihoon mutters. "Not good, not good."

Seungcheol freezes, sandwich halfway to his mouth.

The two of them are camped out on the rooftop of the Met. Jihoon's dismantled a section of the roof, and there are wires and mechanical parts strewn everywhere.

"What's not good?"

Jihoon slaps a monitor. "The museum's surveillance system is down. Which is normally good, right, but I didn't do it."

Seungcheol leans over, sandwich forgotten.

"Can we communicate with the team?"

"Communications... are also down."

"Our cameras, too?"

Jihoon frowns and fiddles with a panel. "We still have access to a few of the cameras that Seungkwan planted last week. The ones that were hidden the best. But most of them have gone dark."

Seungcheol thinks quickly. "So, this doesn't seem to be a museum issue. Someone is sabotaging the cameras."

"Someone else is here," Jihoon realizes, then curses. "This is bad. We might need to pull out."

Seungcheol swallows. "Is it so bad? Do we have enemies? Is that a thing?"

"As a group, no. Individually, yes. Last year, with Chan and Wonwoo — well."

"But we still have a few cameras?"

"Three cameras. Random hallway, another random hallway, and the museum security room. And — _wonderful_ ," Jihoon grumbles. "Minghao and Junhui have just gotten themselves captured."

Seungcheol squints at the grainy black-and-white screen. The two members have just been shoved into the security room, handcuffed. Junhui looks distinctly sheepish; Minghao looks extremely irritated.

"That's that, then," says Jihoon, massaging his temples. "We should cut our losses. We can break them out later. Help me contact the rest of the team, will you?"

"Wait," says Seungcheol, peering closer. Jun's positioned himself right in front of the hidden camera, his fingers tapping against his handcuffs rhythmically.

"What?"

"Jun got the code. His fingers — five, two, six, one, five. That's the keycode."

Jihoon bites his lip, thinking, then scribbles down the numbers on a scrap of paper.

"That's it? Five two six one five?" Jihoon asks urgently.

"Yeah. Five digits," Seungcheol says. He lays his hand on Jihoon's shoulder, briefly. He’s not sure where this burst of confidence is coming from, but... "We've already got the first piece of the puzzle, Jihoon. We can swap the diamond and get out. I'm sure."

Jihoon exhales, folding the paper into a ball. "Okay. We need to get this to Wonwoo and Vernon before the end of their shift so they can unlock the case. Hopefully, Joshua is still keeping the side door open."

Jihoon pauses. "It's going to be a close call. I should go."

It's tempting, but Seungcheol shakes his head.

"The cameras — you need to keep an eye on them. Try to get the systems back up, maybe?"

Seungcheol grabs his suit jacket and shrugs it on.

Jihoon tosses him the paper ball.

"Don't get caught."


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> heist heist heist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Seungcheol sits up, recalling the conversation they'd had."
> 
> me realizing I never wrote the conversation
> 
> EDIT 10/18: the scene in question (jh+sc packing stuff into the vans) has now been moved to the end of chapter 5!

Joshua doesn't so much as blink when Seungcheol explains the situation to him; he shoulders his guitar and shoves his boot into the slightly-ajar side door, prying it open.

"You have a map of the museum?" Joshua confirms.

"I do," Seungcheol replies, instinctively tapping the papers in his pockets. Joshua nods approvingly and holds the door open for him.

"This hallway has been quiet. You should be able to reach the diamond gallery without too much trouble. We don't have any extra uniforms or badges, so if you get caught somewhere you're not supposed to be, just pretend to be totally lost."

"Not a problem." Seungcheol hesitates on the threshold. "Any chance you'll come with me?"

Joshua smiles and shakes his head, pulling his guitar back into place and leaning against the wall.

"Nah. Too many people to keep track of already. I mean, Soonyoung and Chan should be just inside the entrance. They'll help you."

"Fair enough."

Seungcheol steps warily through the entrance as Joshua begins to strum a familiar tune.

Seungcheol turns. "Are you seriously playing Despacito right now?"

~

The door shuts behind Seungcheol with a soft thunking sound. Soonyoung and Chan are nowhere to be seen, but he does spot a pair of softly snoring guards wedged inside a supply closet.

The hallways are empty. It's almost too easy. Seungcheol pulls out his map and begins to make his way towards the gallery.

He walks for a solid minute or two, nose buried in his map. Then, he rounds a corner and rams face-first into someone's shoulder.

Reflexively, he opens his mouth to react, but he's quickly muffled by a gloved hand. His arm is twisted behind his back, sending a sharp stab of pain through his shoulder, and he's forced onto the floor.

"Seungcheol? Whoa, Chan—"

Just as quickly, Seungcheol is released.

"Sorry," Chan mutters. "What are you doing here?"

Seungcheol groans and rubs his arm. Soonyoung helps him up.

"What are _you_ two doing here? I thought you were supposed to be guarding the entrance."

"Seungkwan isn't back yet," Soonyoung tells him.

Seungcheol frowns. "Seungkwan? Where did he go?"

"Our transmitters aren't working. He followed Wonwoo and Vernon to the exhibit. He was going to come back and let us know once they were in place."

Both Soonyoung and Chan look worried. Seungcheol remembers something important.

"I'll go check it out. But you two should regroup outside. Jihoon thinks that someone else might be here."

Chan visibly tenses.

"I knew it," Soonyoung mutters. "Something was off about those guards. They fought too well. But... that would mean that this isn't just the work of one person."

"The plot thickens," Seungcheol mutters, then shakes his head. Joshua must be rubbing off on him. "Still. You two might be targets, so just in case, you should go."

Soonyoung makes a small moue. "And what if you're the target?"

Seungcheol can't really think of a good reply to that, so he laughs nervously and shrugs. Soonyoung and Chan look increasingly doubtful.

"I'll be fine. Just check in with Jihoon, at least. See how things are going."

Soonyoung nods slowly. "Okay. We'll come back, if we can."

"Sounds good."

"Good luck."

"Good luck."

~

Seungcheol makes it to the diamond exhibition without losing too much more time.

The crowd seems to be rather agitated, humming with excitement. Journalists are trading photographs and conducting impromptu interviews; a security guard tries futilely to maintain order. The gallery chamber above is ignored.

From his hidden alcove, Seungcheol scans the crowd. Their Team A is nowhere to be seen. Junhui and Minghao have been captured, but Mingyu and Seokmin have just vanished.

He fumbles for the pair of tiny binoculars that Junhui had given him, and aims them at the gallery. He can see a faint pinkish glow, but the interior of the chamber is completely empty. No guests, no guards. Wonwoo and Vernon are nowhere in sight.

Seungcheol heaves a sigh and sets aside his binoculars, slumping against the wall. Jeonghan _had_ said that things would inevitably go wrong, but he hadn't expected his members to go dropping like flies.

Now he was the only one left still in action.

Wait, no.

 _Jeonghan_.

Seungcheol sits up, recalling the conversation they'd had.

_"I'll be up in the air vents by the gallery."_

He looks up, scanning the high ceilings and upper walls for panels. There's one, a bit further down the security hallway.

He rolls up his museum map and stands on his tiptoes, using the cylinder to tentatively tap at the panel. There's a tinny echo, but no response. Seungcheol squints closer at the panel. He wishes he'd brought a screwdriver.

Seungcheol taps at the vent again. He's considering giving up and just making a blind dash for the gallery — maybe nobody will notice — but suddenly there's an answering creak.

"Jeonghan?" Seungcheol whispers.

"One moment," the voice replies. "Can you catch this panel?"

The panel wobbles. Seungcheol outstretches his hands and grabs its edge as the panel begins to swing loose. He gently sets it on the floor, then looks back up. He can just barely see a shadowy form crouching in the darkness.

Jeonghan maneuvers a bit into a different position — it seems like he’s going to slip through the vent feet-first. Seungcheol isn't sure whether to catch Jeonghan or give him space, and so he decides on something in between, gingerly reaching up to place his hands on Jeonghan's torso and slow his drop to the floor.

It seems to work — the impact is almost inaudible — although Seungcheol's not sure how much of it was his doing. He steps back from Jeonghan to give them more space.

"How are things going?" asks Jeonghan, dusting off his dark jacket.

Seungcheol gives him the rundown that things are essentially not going very well. Jeonghan looks progressively more and more worried as Seungcheol explains.

"And that's it so far," Seungcheol summarizes.

Jeonghan exhales.

"We've been in worse situations. This third party you mention—" Jeonghan scowls. "I have a suspicion about who they are. They won't hurt us, but they won't hesitate to turn us in."

Seungcheol frowns. "Is it okay to continue, then?"

"The odds aren't looking good, if we're the only two members still active."

"Three members," a voice corrects.

Seungcheol jumps as a security guard strides up. But looking more closely, he realizes that it's Vernon.

"Jeonghan. It's them."


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a quick chapter! vernon's back in the game :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- next chapter is all written!! just gotta edit it and figure out the epilogue
> 
> \- writer's block aaargh

Seungcheol steps back as Vernon joins the two of them. Jeonghan's face softens with relief upon seeing Vernon, but then grows cold.

"Who do they have?" Jeonghan asks in a clipped tone.

"Seungkwan. Soonyoung. Wonwoo, and Chan. They've all been sedated. I faked being unconscious, and they skipped me. Everyone else is outside with Jihoon."

"Keep them outside," Jeonghan decides. "We'll conserve our numbers—"

"Jeonghan," Vernon interrupts, his voice surprisingly level. "This wasn't aimed at us. It was a coincidence. They've been planning their own operation for months."

"Coincidence or not, they won't pass up an opportunity to eliminate a rival group."

"We're backing out? If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't have lost the diamond in the first place."

"True," Jeonghan acknowledges, tense. "But we're risking their lives if we continue."

Vernon turns to him. "Seungcheol?"

He thinks before responding. He doesn't know who these people are, but...

"I’m not sure," Seungcheol says carefully. "But Jeonghan. The gallery is unguarded. We have the keycode," he says, pulling the paper ball from his pocket.

"The fake diamond—"

"Is here," says Vernon, producing the stone from his pocket.

Seungcheol meets Jeonghan's eyes. They're so close. "Jeonghan, can you make the swap and get out? Vernon and I will free the others."

"...I can do that."

"I'll keep an eye on him," reassures Vernon, and Jeonghan nods hesitantly.

Seungcheol considers giving Jeonghan a hug of farewell, or maybe just a wave, but Vernon takes his shoulder and guides him away. When he looks back, Jeonghan is already gone.

~

Vernon gives him a description of their archnemesis group as they travel. Unlike Seventeen, the group is anonymous — at least, there's no name for them that they've been able to dig up, despite Seungkwan's best efforts. By their estimates, the group has seven members, more or less. They'd come to public attention at around the same time that Seventeen had. Since then, the two groups had run into each other numerous times at heist scenes, each time resulting in tragic disaster.

"Do we know any of the members' names?" Seungcheol asks. He has a theory. Maybe he knows this group in his modern-day world.

Vernon shakes his head. "No. Their disguises are good. We've never been able to identify them."

They walk a bit further.

"We're here." Vernon nods to a small panel.

"Air vents? But..."

"It's not as difficult as it looks. I've already opened this one," Vernon says, lifting the panel free. "Here, I'll help you up."

Seungcheol wiggles and struggles through the small opening, getting the hem of his jacket snagged on the metal edges an embarrassing amount of times. Finally, he rolls free onto a rusty old iron grating. Vernon hops up after him and pulls the panel back into place.

It's dark. Vernon flicks on a flashlight.

Seungcheol had expected the vents to be a narrow space that they'd have to crawl through, like in the spy movies, but Vernon's flashlight illuminates a surprisingly spacious expanse of crisscrossing beams and bars. Seungcheol cranes his neck upwards, but can't see the ceiling.

"So cool," breathes Seungcheol.

Vernon motions to an industrial catwalk suspended high in the air. "It's kind of late to ask, but I hope you don't mind heights."

Seungcheol gulps. Vernon smiles sympathetically, his face lit eerily by the flashlight.

"Sorry. It's the fastest way to get to Art Restoration. If it's any comfort, catwalks still make me nervous, too."

Vernon guides him to an extremely rickety and unstable spiral staircase connected to an extremely precarious and flimsy catwalk. There are no handrails; the staircase is little more than a series of metal planks jutting out from a pole. Vernon motions him up.

"I'll be right behind you, don't worry."

Seungcheol inspects the staircase dubiously and places a foot onto it.

It squeaks ominously. Vernon helpfully directs his flashlight to illuminate the sagging perforated metal of the first step.

"Please catch me if this thing falls," Seungcheol mutters, and steels his nerves.

His brain goes on autopilot for the next minute, and with a sigh of relief, he finds himself at the edge of the catwalk, which blessedly has handrails that he can grip onto.

The floor of the catwalk is metal grille — he glimpses the colorful lights of an exhibit many feet below him. A wave of vertigo hits him.

 _Don't look down_ , he reminds himself.

His eyes drift across the empty space as he waits for Vernon to join him. He sees abandoned spotlights and hanging cables.

And a flicker of motion. Seungcheol blinks. Had he imagined that?

"All right, I'm right behind you," says Vernon. "Keep going straight on the catwalk."

Seungcheol nods and starts forward. Vernon helpfully swivels his flashlight to better reveal the space in front of Seungcheol.

And the grinning stranger right in front of him.

Seungcheol yells and ducks on instinct. There's a swoosh of air passing just above his head as the figure swings some sort of baton at him. Seungcheol falls back onto the catwalk and scoots away desperately onto the threshold of the staircase.

Vernon tosses him the flashlight, steps around and over him, and attacks.

There's a clang of metal. Seungcheol fumbles with the flashlight in his lap, but Vernon leads the stranger further down the catwalk. By the time he's raised the flashlight, they're too far away, and it's too dark to make out the details of the fight.

Seungcheol hears thudding impacts and the creaking of metal. The catwalk sways back and forth.

There's another thud, and Seungcheol realizes he’s inadvertently backed into the staircase railing.

He tries to stand up, but his jacket catches on something, and suddenly, he's caught off balance. His heart jumps.

He flails his arms, but it's no use as Seungcheol plummets from the catwalk.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> grand finale!! the plot train vrooms faster than ever

Seungcheol wakes up alone. His muscles ache. He peels his face off a metal grille, gingerly fingering the painful imprint on his cheek.

The air vents are utterly silent. Seungcheol sits upright — there's no sign of Vernon or his attacker.

He's got to act quickly.

The flashlight has fallen at his feet. He flicks it on and rummages for the museum map in his pocket.

 _Art Restoration_ , Vernon had said.

He glances up at the catwalk. Sure enough, it seems to be pointing in the direction of the art restoration rooms. He folds up the map and shoves it in his pocket, carefully placing the flashlight between his teeth.

He strides to the staircase, places his foot on the first step. He looks up and stares into the dark looming emptiness.

The nerves hit him.

 _Don't think_ , he tells himself. _Just move._

~

There are a few close calls, and he stumbles a few times, but he makes it across most of the catwalk with no problem. Eventually, the ceiling of the air vent starts to slant downwards. Seungcheol hops down a staircase and checks his map.

The art restoration room should be right below him.

He searches around with his flashlight and spies a panel. Testing it with his fingertips, it seems that it's already been unscrewed. Carefully, Seungcheol pries it open.

Bright light hits him. His view of the room is blocked by a stack of wooden crates. He blinks a few times, waits a bit longer for his vision to adjust, then carefully pulls himself through the vent opening and squats behind the crates.

"So _that's_ why there were more cameras than usual," a voice says. Seungcheol peeks around the side of the crate.

There. Tied up and sedated at the other side of the room. Seungkwan. Soonyoung. Chan. Wonwoo. Vernon. And Jeonghan too, Seungcheol realizes, his heart sinking as Jeonghan is dragged in by a pair of guards. Jeonghan doesn't seem to have been sedated, but he doesn't kick or fight. His eyes dart around the room, taking in the situation.

"Well, this is nice," someone else says. "There's a bounty for the youngest one, you know."

Jeonghan's eyes flash.

There are five unidentified people in the room. Two of them are efficiently packing away artworks onto carts and wheeling them outside through a large garage door. One of them paces restlessly. The other two are occupied with Jeonghan's restraints.

Seungcheol's well-hidden behind his crate, but Jeonghan spots him.

Jeonghan's eyes narrow, and he gives Seungcheol a look. He's warning him to stay back.

Seungcheol retreats out of sight, thinking furiously. Five guards — that's too many for him to tackle. He can't do this alone.

 _Cameras_.

They haven't all been caught yet. He's not alone. He cranes his head around, looking for cameras, and he spots one, wedged in the corner of the room. It's been covered with a black cloth. If he can just get to that camera...

He stays low, darting between crates when the guards are looking away. He makes it to the camera and yanks off the cloth. The small red light of the camera flickers, then begins to blink rapidly.

Seungcheol hunches down back behind the crates.

He hopes Jihoon's watching.

"And what do we have here?"

Jeonghan says nothing as the Carat diamond is pulled from his jacket pocket. The mysterious thief hefts the diamond into the air, angling it to catch the light.

Seungcheol clenches his jaw. They had been so close.

"Not bad," the thief admits, pocketing the gem. "You know, I don't believe we've ever officially introduced ourselves. I'm Shownu. Pleased to meet you."

Seungcheol's head snaps up in surprise. Shownu... from Monsta X?

"Jeonghan," Jeonghan responds shortly.

Shownu spreads his arms wide. "Sorry about this whole mess. It's really a shame you had to ruin our plans. We were planning to rob the whole museum, but now we'll only have time for a section or two."

"Are you really going to turn all of us in?" asks Jeonghan, tilting his head.

"Of course not! Just some of you."

One of the Monsta X members ( _is that Hyungwon?_ Seungcheol thinks) lifts Chan up into a cart. Jeonghan tries to step forward, but he's bound securely to the wall.

"You'll regret this," Jeonghan threatens, his voice suddenly venomous.

Shownu shrugs. "That's what I told your leader last time, actually, but he didn't listen to me. So, if that's all, we'll be on our way—"

On impulse, Seungcheol steps out into the light.

~

It's fitting, but also so _unfitting_ for their best friends to be their worst enemies. Seungcheol isn't even sure what he's doing until Shownu and Jeonghan look up, surprised.

"Hey, Shownu. It's Seungcheol. How are you?"

Shownu turns. They lock eyes. Seungcheol gives him his brightest, gummiest smile.

"...Fine?" answers Shownu suspiciously. Seungcheol takes the opening.

"Look, I actually wanted to apologize for, um, last time," Seungcheol says. Jeonghan blinks and gives him a _what-are-you-doing_ look. "We should have communicated better, right?"

"Right," Shownu replies. He frowns. "If you're just trying to distract me—"

"No, really. I feel like we're just hurting each other, you know? It's not a healthy relationship. So what if we start over? We can give you... a château or something to make up for last time," Seungcheol says, hoping that Mingyu won't mind. "We can pay twice the bounty for Chan."

"No, that's. That's okay," Shownu says stiltedly. "We, um, don't actually need the money."

"You just want to do things with your group, right? Pull off some insane heists together?"

"Something like that," answers Shownu warily.

Seungcheol smiles even wider. "Exactly! We should work together, sometime. Do a collab."

"Collab?"

"Yeah, a collab. It would be really fun. We can break into the Louvre, or the British Museum. Or we can just, like, hang out and chill in our mansion. Watch some movies."

"You're," Shownu starts, then stops. "Movies?"

"Yeah, a movie night. We can order some food and, um, project something onto a screen."

Shownu frowns and turns to Jeonghan.

"Is Seungcheol feeling okay?" he asks. Jeonghan shrugs helplessly, and Shownu turns back.

"Okay. Fine. Say we do this movie night. Why now? Why put aside all our misunderstandings?"

"I mean... they were just misunderstandings, right? And... you were kind of right about what you said last time."

"What did I say?" asks Shownu, eyebrows furrowed.

Seungcheol scratches his neck sheepishly.

"Well... that I was just trying to distract you."

Shownu spins around.

~

Seungcheol grins proudly as they're joined by the other half of their team: Jihoon, Mingyu, Seokmin, Joshua, and even Junhui and Minghao. Vernon cracks his eye open — he'd been faking unconsciousness, again — and rolls to his feet, quickly freeing Jeonghan.

Shownu backs up, glancing around. His members are nowhere in sight.

"You tricked me," Shownu realizes, looking strangely disappointed.

"A little bit," Seungcheol confesses, feeling a stab of guilt. "But, um... I still think a movie night would be fun? No hard feelings?"

"You win this round," Shownu tells him. "Fine. You go your way, we'll go ours."

He reaches to a mechanical device on his wrist and presses it. The lights flicker, and go out, leaving them in pitch darkness.

"Flashlights!" calls out Vernon.

Shownu has vanished, but the other half of Seventeen makes their way over. They work together to lift the unconscious members and carry them out the garage door, regrouping at a safe distance from the museum.

Seungcheol helps Jihoon gently set down Soonyoung in the grass and heaves out a sigh. Joshua jogs over, kneeling by Soonyoung and administering some sort of concoction. Soonyoung mumbles something, eyes flickering open, and Jihoon pulls him into a sitting position.

Seungcheol looks up at the stars in the night sky and smiles tiredly. It's been a long day. He feels an odd urge to write a song, some lyrics, anything.

He waits for the rest of the members to arrive, then waves his hands for attention.

"Is everyone here?" Seungcheol calls out. He does a quick head count, and they're all accounted for. He breathes a sigh of relief.

"Well, that could have gone a lot worse," he reasons, sitting down in the grass.

"We lost the diamond. Again," remarks Minghao.

Seungcheol opens his mouth to reassure them that although things hadn't worked out, they'd find another chance—

"Actually."

Seungcheol looks at Jeonghan, who smiles and slides a finger into his boot.

"Did you put the Carat diamond inside your _shoe_?" Seungkwan squawks, sitting up and blinking groggily.

"That's very unhygienic," says Seokmin, frowning.

Jeonghan shrugs and extracts the gem, giving it a quick polish with the hem of his shirt.

"You kept both of the diamonds," Seungcheol realizes.

Jeonghan nods. "Why not? The guards were gone. I thought it would be a good idea in case I was captured."

Joshua gives Jeonghan a high-five.

Jeonghan hands Seungcheol the diamond, and they huddle around it in a circle. Seungcheol is hit by a sense of déjà vu.

"Good job, team," he says quietly. The Carat diamond glows softly.

Far away in the distance, a siren begins to wail, and Seungcheol sighs. "We should start heading back."

Jihoon nods. "Some of my stuff's still on the roof. I'll take one or two people?"

"Sounds good," says Seungcheol, nodding. "The rest of you — let's go home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- not super familiar with monsta x so they might be a bit OOC? if so, sorry!!
> 
> \- still figuring out that epilogue... any thoughts or requests? movie night? coups having a Deep Emotional talk with jeonghan? coups waking up in present day? thief!coups waking up in present day? thief!coups waking up in original era? 1 year later time lapse?
> 
> \- so many plot bunnies. the monsta x collab? and expanding on the side ships. verkwan origin story? soonhoon side mission? more wonwoo pov & unrequited-but-not-unrequited meanie angst?


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> epilogue!

“No, Mingyu, he said to start with your left foot—”

“This _is_ my left foot — oh, it’s yours.”

“It’s _my_ turn to dance with Vernon.”

“Seungcheol, am I doing this right?”

“You just had your turn!”

“Let me _up_ , Soonyoung, I swear—”

“Seungcheol!” Seokmin bounds over excitedly, and Seungcheol releases Jeonghan’s hand for a second to look over.

“Look! Minghao and I have been practicing our lifts,” Seokmin tells him, and Seungcheol smiles proudly as the two demonstrate the maneuver perfectly elegantly.

“Great job,” he says sincerely, before glancing to the side. “Jihoon, please stop strangling Soonyoung.”

“He keeps _dipping_ me—”

Jeonghan guides Seungcheol to a more vacant area of the room, and they continue to dance.

“I’m glad you decided to teach ballroom dancing and not hip hop,” Jeonghan muses.

Seungcheol shrugs and looks around the room. They’re still in their New York mansion; Mingyu’s repurposed one of the dusty but spacious lounges into a makeshift ballroom. He watches contentedly as the members drift back and forth, chattering and smiling. They’re having fun.

“It’s easy to learn the basics, and some of us already have experience with it,” Seungcheol says, nodding towards Seokmin.

“True,” Jeonghan admits. “But that’s not what I meant.”

It’s been three days since they’d retrieved the Carat diamond. Sorting out the logistical aftermath had been easy.

Sorting out his feelings? Not so much.

As real as the sights, sounds, and smells of this world feel, Seungcheol can’t deny that it’s gradually becoming more and more like a dream. One morning, he’ll wake up back in his dorm room.

Which isn’t so bad — he’ll have his members in either world, after all. But Seungcheol can only dip his head and break eye contact with Jeonghan.

They come to a halt in the middle of the floor. Jeonghan waits for Seungcheol to meet his eyes.

“When will you go?” asks Jeonghan seriously.

Seungcheol hesitates.

“I saw you talking to Joshua earlier,” Jeonghan tells him, holding his gaze. “I know you know.”

“Tonight,” Seungcheol admits quietly. This time, it’s Jeonghan’s turn to avert his eyes.

Seungcheol carefully takes his hand and leads them back into the dance.

“You won’t miss me,” Seungcheol blurts out. “The other Seungcheol — your Seungcheol — will be back. We’re the same person. Just a little different.”

Jeonghan raises his hand to twirl Seungcheol.

“I’ll miss you,” he says, so quietly that Seungcheol almost doesn’t hear it.

~

Seungcheol doesn’t want to open his eyes.

He knows he’s back in his dorm, can feel the polyester blanket soft between his fingertips.

He lies in bed, motionless.

Was it all a dream?

_“SEUNGCHEOL!”_

His eyes blink wide as the door slams open. It’s Mingyu, breathing heavily.

“Seungcheol. Something’s up with Jeonghan,” Mingyu gasps.

Instantly, Seungcheol swings his legs out of bed and makes to get up, but suddenly a headache spikes into existence, hot fuzzy pain running through his skull. Mingyu rushes to his side.

“Careful! You’re still recovering,” Mingyu warns, but he helps pull Seungcheol to his feet and guides him down the hallway.

Seungcheol takes a deep breath before opening the door, readying himself for whatever he might see.

Then he opens the door.

~

“Where am I?” demands Jeonghan, clutching a plastic knife tightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this fic has been so fun to write!! thank you all for reading and thank you for your support <3
> 
> I was planning to release the epilogue after comeback, but the ballroom dance idea struck & I just had to immediately write it up ;) didn't edit it very much so please excuse any unwieldy parts!
> 
> speaking of which -- less than 4 hours to go until semicolon!! I'm super excited, can't wait!!


End file.
